RoadVitals

1997 Pontiac Trans Sport Seat belts Problems

Owner-reported complaints naming the seat belt system, filed with NHTSA

Data refreshed

Seat belts reportsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
11
Latest Sep 28, 2004
Share of all reportsThis category as a share of every owner report on file for this model year. One report can name more than one component, so the categories overlap.
5%
of 236 total
Crash or fire reportedReports in this category whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. The reporter's own answer on the NHTSA form, not a verified finding.
1
Injuries or deaths reportedTotals the submitters entered on their own reports in this category. Not verified by NHTSA and not a casualty statistic.
1

What this page shows

Reports naming seat belts, buckles, retractors and pretensioners. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 1997 Pontiac Trans Sport submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 11 reports on file name it.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Owner reports naming seat belt

Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed

Seat belts
Filed Sep 28, 2004

CONSUMER STATED THE PASSENGER'S SIDE SEAT BELT BUCKLE WILL NOT LATCH.*AK

NHTSA ID
10094467
Incident
Sep 14, 2004
Mileage
132,035 mi
Seat belts
Filed May 7, 2003

THE DRIVERS AND PASSENGERS REAR SEATBELT LATCH DID NOT LATCH. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TOTHE DEALER WHO STATED THAT THEY NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. *NLM SECOND ROW SEATS SEATBELT DID NOT LATCH PROPERLY.*TS

NHTSA ID
10019374
Seat belts
Filed Oct 23, 2002

CONSUMER STATES THAT ALL THE MIDDLE SEAT BELT TABS, THAT HOLDS THE SEAT BELT IS MALFUNCTIONING, UNABLE TO SECURE A CHILD SAFETY SEAT,TABS IT WILL BREAK OFF AFTER BEING FASTERN.DEALER CONTACTED. MR

NHTSA ID
8021419
Incident
Oct 9, 2002
Body & structureSeat beltsSteering+1 more
Filed Jul 8, 2002

PROBLEM #1 - SEAT BELTS. FOUR OUT OF THE SEVEN SEAT BELTS IN THE CAR HAVE FAILED. SPECIFICALLY THE RETRACTION SYSTEM. FOUR OUT OF SEVEN GOING BAD TO ME, MEANS THIS IS NOT AN ISOLATED FAILURE. I'M CONCERN ABOUT THE OTHER 3 WORKING IF IN AN ACCIDENT. DEALERS CONTACTED WANT TO CHARGE ME $800 - $1000 TO FIX FOUR SEAT BELTS. NEED TO GET IT FIXED, BUT NOTHING TO BELIEVE I WON'T BE ASKING THAT SAME DEALER TO FIX THE OTHER 3 SEAT BELTS WHEN THEY GO BAD TOO. DEALERS SAY HIGH COST OF REPAIR IS DIRECTLY ATTRIBUTED TO THE COST OF PARTS. UNLIKE AN ALTERNATOR, OR OTHER ENGINE COMPONENT, THE SEAT BELT ASSEMBLY IS SOLE SOURCED FROM ONE MANUFACTURER. LOCKED IN TO A NON-COMPETITIVE PRICE (AND OBVIOUSLY OVER INFLATED). PROBLEM #2 - RACK AND PINON STEERING. I NOTICED ON YOUR WEB SITE WHAT I BELIEVE TO BE THE SAME PROBLEM UNDER PONTIAC TRANSPORTS. BASICALLY TOLD BY DEALER THE RACK AND PINON STEERING SYSTEM IS BAD. OUT OF WARRANTY, SO BIG BUCKS. HAVE HAD TO PAY QUITE A BIT IN DEALER REPAIR BILLS ALREADY ON VEHICAL. FOR EXAMPLE, PROBLEMS WITH AUTOMATIC SLIDING DOOR, WINDSHIELD WIPERS, BACK HATCH, SIDE WINDOW, PUSH BUTTONS ON DOOR ARM REST, AIR CONDITIONING.....ALSO POOR DESIGN WITH PLASTIC PARTS IN HIGH STRESSED POINT AREAS.*AK

NHTSA ID
763955
Incident
Feb 15, 2002
Seat belts
Filed May 21, 2002
Crash reported1 injury reported

I RECEIVED A SERIOUS CONCUSSION IN A REAR END/FRONT END COLLISION DUE TO THE FACT SEAT BELT FAILED TO HOLD ME IN PLACE. I HIT THE SUNVISOR AND THEN HIT THE BACK HEAD REST SO HARD I BROKE THE SEAT.*AK

NHTSA ID
762134
Incident
Apr 24, 2002
Seat belts
Filed May 14, 2002

VEHICLES SEAT BELT BUCKLE IN THE MIDDLE BEHIND DIVER WILL UNLATCH ONCE BUCKLED. NOW THE BUCKLE RELEASE BUTTON STAYS DOWN AND SEAT BELT IS OF NO USE. *JG

NHTSA ID
565765
Incident
Aug 10, 2000
Interior & seatsSeat belts
Filed Dec 27, 2001

RECLINE LATCHES - DO NOT PROPERLY RE-ENGAGE. SMALL CHILD CAN EASILY LIFT LATCH WHILE VEHICLE IS MOVING. UNTIL LATCH IS MANUALLY PUSHED BACK DOWN, SEAT BACK WILL NOT CATCH IN ANY POSITION. SEAT BELT RETRACTOR - WE HAVE HAD MULTIPLE FAILURES ON THE SEAT BELT MECHANISM IN THIS VEHICLE THAT EITHER PREVENT THE SEAT BELT FROM BEING PULLED OUT FOR USE, OR CAN LEAVE SEAT BELT HANGING OUT OF DOOR. CLOSING DOOR MIGHT DAMAGE BELT OR LATCH. BOTH ISSUES HAVE BEEN DISCUSSED WITH GM. GM CLAIMS (FILE # C06088691) NEITHER IS SAFETY ISSUE.*AK

NHTSA ID
756082
Incident
Nov 1, 2001
Body & structureSeat belts
Filed Apr 23, 2001

PASSENGER'S SLIDING POWER DOOR QUIT WORKING. A RECALL WAS RECEIVED FOR LATCH ON DOOR, BUT DID NOT FIX PROBLEM. ALSO, BOTH SEATS BELTS IN MIDDLE WILL NOT STAY LATCHED. *AK

NHTSA ID
886539
Incident
Apr 1, 2001
Seat belts
Filed Sep 16, 2000

NO SUMMARY

NHTSA ID
731657
Incident
Aug 10, 2000
Body & structureEngineSeat belts+1 more
Filed Nov 15, 1999

I HAVE HAD THE SEAT BELT LATCHES REPLACED 4 TIMES ON THE MID-ROW SEATS. 2 TIMES I HAVE HAD TO TAKE IT IN TO HAVE THE WINDOW LATCH REPAIRED ON THE MID-ROW,LEFT WINDOW. IT KEPT POPPING OPEN WHEN DRIVING IN BUMPY CONDITIONS. THE WATER PUMP HAS GIVEN OUT 2X. THE POWER SLIDING DOOR KEEPS BLOWING THE FUSE AND WILL NOT OPERATE. THE REAR WINDOW WIPER AND WASHER HAS BEEN INOPERABLE ON 2 OCCASIONS. DEALER HAS ATTEMPTED TO FIX ALL THESE PROBLEMS REPEATEDLY, BUT THEY ARE ONLY TEMPORARY FIXES! THESE THINGS ARE OBVIOUSLY DEFECTS BECAUSE THEY OCCUR AGAIN AND AGAIN. *AK

NHTSA ID
714843
Incident
Dec 18, 1998
Seat belts
Filed Apr 15, 1998

VEHICLE HAS 2 BUILT- IN CAR SEATS THAT CONTAIN A PLASTIC LATCH , THIS LATCH DOES NOT HOLD HARNESS STRAP TOGETHER IN ANY TYPE OF MOVEMENT OR PRESSURE DONE TO IT, RESULTING IN LOSS OF PROTECTION TO CHILD THAT IS RESTRAINED IN SEAT. *AK

NHTSA ID
822450

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

Other components reported on this vehicle

Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own

Elsewhere on this vehicle

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .